rob; am sorry to hear of your medical condition, i am proud that you did speak up to encourage all to have there psa's done. I personally went through this mental trauma starting in the fall of 2000, was told after surgery in feb. 2002 that I would not live past that year as the Ca. had spread into my lymphatic system! Hey. guess what…they were wrong. I have my psa checked twice a year now and it has stayed below the range of 1, which is where you want it. thanks to hormone therapy, I am in remision and have been for 5 years now !
rob, you are one of the grand poohpa's of hang gliding and I feel in my heart that will be so for many more years. if there is anything or anyway I might help you with this, just ask !
love ya
flyguy

ps: still would like that job nameing gliders for WW

There is a thread about this here:

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6106

oop's, insufficent # of brain cell's! lucky to remember to take my next breath.
flyguy

Davis, I'm sure you are going to get some blowback from your memorial service post, but I, for one, couldn't agree more. I think I am a bit more extreme in my viewpoint; I think belief in ANYTHING at all is the primary source of evil consequences for mankind. Selling an imaginary friend to those in need of consolation is, to me, despicable, not to mention intellectualy dishonest. Go Davis! Steve

Hi Davis and All,

Well-said! I am often unable to tolerate the nonsense that Christian priests (mostly Catholic - like I was as a child) spout at funerals. In the event of my death my wife Mary will (if it can be arranged at short notice) take me to Marley House which is in the beautiful park beside our house in suburban Dublin. I have chosen the music that will be played (Jackson Brown and John Hiatt feature there!) and I hope that my friends can reminisce and enjoy a few glasses in my memory.

Last week we had an amazing situation where an eminent UK journalist, Roy Greenslade, couldn't bury his atheist mother in County Donegal because there was no non-religious cemetery and the Catholic and Protestant cemeteries were insisting on a religious ceremony!

I am a constant critic of the Catholic Church and its hypocrisy. A respected radio broadcaster recently stated, quite correctly, that there are now more priests in jail than in Irish seminaries! Those who have been convicted have practically all been jailed for child abuse.

Have you come across Richard Dawkins in the US. He's wonderful at debunking religious and superstitious clap-trap. Have a look at http://richarddawkins.net/ . I'm bringing his DVDs with me when I'm paragliding next week in the Sierra Nevada (in Spain not in the US!) in case the weather lets me down.

Right on, Davis!

Dara Hogan
Ireland

Thanks for your candid observations and thoughts about Rob Kells' memorial. No doubt some people will be upset, but that can't be helped.

To suggest that death is somehow better than life is the ultimate big lie, and one that has been used for thousands of years to encourage young men (and increasingly, young women) to martyr themselves in the name of some political or military conflict. But no lasting solution to any conflict can come from violence.

Let's celebrate life while we have it. Each time you get together with friends, enjoy the moment, which is a gift - that's why they call it 'the present'.

And yet, we can still remember our friends when they are gone. I remember Rob's annual visits for several years to Willi & Vincene Muller's place at Cochrane, Alberta, where he would come up to help with the parachute repack clinic. What always impressed me, apart from how hard Rob worked while at the clinic, was how many names of ordinary pilots he could remember. And indeed, he could pick up from stories they'd told him the year before, and ask about further developments. His memory was phenomenal, and his interest in people was genuine. Goodbye Rob, I'll miss you.

I suppose that the only thing about this thread that I don't like is that this is NOT what we should be writing about in regard to Rob and his life.
Ahh the internet.

Rest in PEACE Rob…

Thanks for watching over the flock, from here to eternity.

I go to church every Sunday. I believe and have faith. There is more to life than a big bang theory and primordial soup.

I went to two funeral/memorial services this weekend while I was in California. The one I thought was going to be religious and depressing was not and the one that I thought would be neutral and upbeat wasn't.

As much as I am a Christian, Rob's memorial service was a little over the top on the bible thumping. Instead of being inclusive to the crowd, it felt exclusive. I was very uncomfortable for the people in the auditorium that were not believers. It kind of pissed me off that the Church would try and use this occasion as an opportunity to convert people. IMO, that is the wrong way to do it and if anything drives people away.

Also, I didn't know that Rob was a Christian. This must have been something recent as I recall Rob speaking to me about numerology after Chris Muller's death 3 years ago. I think that memory added to the shock.

The service was great from the standpoint of hearing of Rob's adventures and Rob's continued optimism right to the end.

The subject of this thread should be changed.

----- Original Message -----
From: Morningside Flight Park
To: 'Davis Straub'
Sent: Monday, September 08, 2008 6:53 AM


Thanks for the details concerning Kells’s Memorial. I agree with you that recruiting Christians from a Memorial Service is tasteless and rude. The Oz Report has once again demonstrated cutting edge involvement in ultralight soaring. Congratulations and thank you!


Jeff Nicolay
Morningside Flight Park
357 Morningside Lane
Charlestown, New Hampshire USA 03603
603 542-4416 fax 603 543-9577
E-mail - <email>
website - flymorningside.com

Have you come across Richard Dawkins in the US.

Of yes, of course. I love Dawkins. His thinking is so clear and cuts through all the confabulations.

You can find Dawkins if you search the Oz Report.